Unlocking the Fatty Acid and Antioxidant Profile of Grape Pomace: A Systematic Assessment Across Varieties and Vintages for Its Sustainable Valorization.

Grape pomace (GP), the main by-product of the wine industry, represents a valuable source of bioactive metabolites with significant potential for valorization in the context of sustainable bioresource management. This study systematically characterizes the fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) profile, total phenolic content (TPC), total flavonoid content (TFC), and antioxidant activities (DPPH, ABTS, ORAC) of GP derived from seven grape varieties across three consecutive vintages (2022-2024). White GP, particularly Verdelho and Sercial, exhibited a superior lipid quality with high concentrations of methyl linoleate (up to 1997 mg/100 g DW) and methyl oleate (up to 1294 mg/100 g DW), low atherogenic (AI < 0.

New Contributions to Deepen the Quality-Based Safety Assessment in the Consumption of Edible Nasturtium Flowers-The Role of Volatilome.

The garden Nasturtium ( L.) is increasingly consumed worldwide due to its culinary appeal and perceived health benefits. However, the chemical markers underlying its functional properties remain insufficiently characterized.

Multifaceted Biological Activities of Culinary Herb and Spice Extracts: In Vitro and In Silico Simulation Insights into Inflammation-Related Targets.

Culinary herbs and spices are valued worldwide for their flavor, aroma, and medicinal benefits. They encompass diverse bioactive metabolites, such as polyphenols and terpenoids, which contribute to plant defense and offer anticarcinogenic, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and cognitive-enhancing effects. This study aimed to establish the volatile fingerprint of culinary herbs (lemon verbena, chives, basil, sage, coriander, and parsley) and spices (curcuma, nutmeg, cumin, black pepper, Jamaica pepper, and juniper berry) using headspace solid-phase microextraction combined with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (HS-SPME/GC-MS).

Edible Flowers in Modern Gastronomy: A Study of Their Volatilomic Fingerprint and Potential Health Benefits.

Given the transformation that gastronomy has undergone in recent years, there is a need to characterize some new foods that are being incorporated into the modern diet. Among them, edible flowers stand out, which are used today not only to enhance the organoleptic properties of gourmet dishes but also for some of the beneficial properties they provide to human health. In this study, the volatilomic fingerprint of seven edible flowers that are used daily in Michelin-starred restaurants on Madeira Island was established.

Improved methodology to survey veterinary antibiotics in environmental samples using µSPEed microextraction followed by ultraperformance liquid chromatography.

A μSPEed microextraction combined with ultra-performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) with UV detection was developed for analysing six veterinary antibiotics (tetracycline, chlortetracycline, oxytetracycline, doxycycline, sulfamethoxazole, and trimethoprim) in environmental samples. To optimise extraction, 12 sorbent cartridges, sample loading cycles, volumes, and pH were assayed. The PS/DVB-RP cartridge, three 250 μL sample loading cycles, and two 50-µL elutions with acidified methanol yielded maximum efficiency.

A Comparative Study of the Biological Properties of L. Fruits and Leaves Related to the Prevention of Cardiovascular Diseases.

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) remain the leading cause of death globally, emphasizing the need for effective preventive strategies. Plant-based foods, rich in phytochemicals, offer a promising potential in CVD prevention. This study investigated the antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antihypertensive properties of two L.

Integrating OMICS-based platforms and analytical tools for diagnosis and management of pancreatic cancer: a review.

Cancer remains the second leading cause of death worldwide, surpassed only by cardiovascular disease. From the different types of cancer, pancreatic cancer (PaC) has one of the lowest survival rates, with a survival rate of about 20% after the first year of diagnosis and about 8% after 5 years. The lack of highly sensitive and specific biomarkers, together with the absence of symptoms in the early stages, determines a late diagnosis, which is associated with a decrease in the effectiveness of medical intervention, regardless of its nature - surgery and/or chemotherapy.

Plant-Derived Terpenoids: A Plethora of Bioactive Compounds with Several Health Functions and Industrial Applications-A Comprehensive Overview.

Terpenoids are a large class of natural secondary plant metabolites which are highly diverse in structure, formed from isoprene units (C-5), associated with a wide range of biological properties, including antioxidant, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, antiallergic, anticancer, antimetastatic, antiangiogenesis, and apoptosis induction, and are considered for potential application in the food, cosmetics, pharmaceutical, and medical industries. In plants, terpenoids exert a variety of basic functions in growth and development. This review gives an overview, highlighting the current knowledge of terpenoids and recent advances in our understanding of the organization, regulation, and diversification of core and specialized terpenoid metabolic pathways and addressing the most important functions of volatile and non-volatile specialized terpenoid metabolites in plants.

Secondary Bioactive Metabolites from Foods of Plant Origin as Agents against Neurodegenerative Disorders.

Neurodegenerative disorders (NDDs) such as Alzheimer's (AD) and Parkinson's (PD) are on the rise, robbing people of their memories and independence. While risk factors such as age and genetics play an important role, exciting studies suggest that a diet rich in foods from plant origin may offer a line of defense. These kinds of foods, namely fruits and vegetables, are packed with a plethora of powerful bioactive secondary metabolites (SBMs), including terpenoids, polyphenols, glucosinolates, phytosterols and capsaicinoids, which exhibit a wide range of biological activities including antioxidant, antidiabetic, antihypertensive, anti-Alzheimer's, antiproliferative, and antimicrobial properties, associated with preventive effects in the development of chronic diseases mediated by oxidative stress such as type 2 diabetes mellitus, respiratory diseases, cancer, cardiovascular diseases, and NDDs.

Clinical Perspectives on the Use of Computer Vision in Glaucoma Screening.

Glaucoma is one of the leading causes of irreversible blindness in the world. Early diagnosis and treatment increase the chances of preserving vision. However, despite advances in techniques for the functional and structural assessment of the retina, specialists still encounter many challenges, in part due to the different presentations of the standard optic nerve head (ONH) in the population, the lack of explicit references that define the limits of glaucomatous optic neuropathy (GON), specialist experience, and the quality of patients' responses to some ancillary exams.

Corrigendum to "Phytochemicals and bioactive constituents in food packaging - A systematic review" [Heliyon 9(11) (November 2023) e21196].

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.

What Are We Eating? Surveying the Presence of Toxic Molecules in the Food Supply Chain Using Chromatographic Approaches.

Consumers in developed and Western European countries are becoming more aware of the impact of food on their health, and they demand clear, transparent, and reliable information from the food industry about the products they consume. They recognise that food safety risks are often due to the unexpected presence of contaminants throughout the food supply chain. Among these, mycotoxins produced by food-infecting fungi, endogenous toxins from certain plants and organisms, pesticides, and other drugs used excessively during farming and food production, which lead to their contamination and accumulation in foodstuffs, are the main causes of concern.

Phytochemicals and bioactive constituents in food packaging - A systematic review.

Designing and manufacturing functional bioactive ingredients and pharmaceuticals have grown worldwide. Consumers demand for safe ingredients and concerns over harmful synthetic additives have prompted food manufacturers to seek safer and sustainable alternative solutions. In recent years the preference by consumers to natural bioactive agents over synthetic compounds increased exponentially, and consequently, naturally derived phytochemicals and bioactive compounds, with antimicrobial and antioxidant properties, becoming essential in food packaging field.

Tracing the volatilomic fingerprint of grape pomace as a powerful approach for its valorization.

The huge amount of grape pomace (GP) generated every year worldwide, particularly in Europe, creates negative impacts at the economic and environmental levels. As far as we know, scarce research has been done on the volatilomic fingerprint of GP. To meet consumer demand for healthy foods, there is a growing interest in the characterization of particular volatile organic metabolites (VOMS) in GP that can be used for industrial applications, including the food industry.

The Fingerprint of Fortified Wines-From the Sui Generis Production Processes to the Distinctive Aroma.

The fortified wines that originated in Mediterranean countries have, in common, a high alcohol content to increase their shelf-life during long journeys to northern Europe and the American continent. Nowadays, the world's better-known wines, including Marsala, Madeira, Port, and Sherry, due to their high alcoholic content, sweet taste, and intense aromatic profile, are designated as dessert wines and sometimes served as aperitifs. This review gives an overview of the traditional vinification process, including the microbiota and autochthonous yeast, as well as the regulatory aspects of the main Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish fortified wines.

Evaluation of Tropane Alkaloids in Teas and Herbal Infusions: Effect of Brewing Time and Temperature on Atropine and Scopolamine Content.

Atropine and scopolamine belong to the tropane alkaloid (TA) family of natural toxins. They can contaminate teas and herbal teas and appear in infusions. Therefore, this study focused on analyzing atropine and scopolamine in 33 samples of tea and herbal tea infusions purchased in Spain and Portugal to determine the presence of these compounds in infusions brewed at 97 °C for 5 min.

Simultaneous microextraction of pesticides from wastewater using optimized μSPEed and μQuEChERS techniques for food contamination analysis.

Food contamination with pesticides poses significant risks to consumer safety and undermines confidence in food supply chains. Detecting pesticides in food samples is a challenging task that requires efficient extraction techniques. This study aims to compare and validate two microextraction techniques, μSPEed and μQuEChERS-dSPE, for the simultaneous extraction of eight pesticides (paraquat, thiabendazole, asulam, picloram, ametryn, atrazine, linuron, and cymoxanil) from wastewater samples.

Polystyrene microplastic particles in the food chain: Characteristics and toxicity - A review.

Polystyrene (PS) is a crucial material for modern plastic manufacturers, but its widespread use and direct discard in the environment severely affect the food chain. This review provides a detailed study on the impact of PS microplastics (PS-MPs) on the food chain and the environment, including information on their mechanism, degradation process, and toxicity. The accumulation of PS-MPs in organisms' different organs leads to various adverse reactions, such as reduced body weight, premature deaths, pulmonary diseases, neurotoxicity, transgenerational issues, oxidative stress, metabolic alterations, ecotoxicity, immunotoxicity, and other dysfunctions.

Tracing the Volatilomic Fingerprint of the Most Popular Italian Fortified Wines.

The aim of the current study was to provide a useful platform to identify characteristic molecular markers related to the authenticity of Italian fortified wines. For this purpose, the volatilomic fingerprint of the most popular Italian fortified wines was established using headspace solid-phase microextraction combined with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (HS-SPME/GC-MS). Several volatile organic compounds (VOCs), belonging with distinct chemical groups, were identified, ten of which are common to all the analyzed fortified Italian wines.

Delving into Agri-Food Waste Composition for Antibacterial Phytochemicals.

The overuse of antibiotics in the healthcare, veterinary, and agricultural industries has led to the development of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), resulting in significant economic losses worldwide and a growing healthcare problem that urgently needs to be solved. Plants produce a variety of secondary metabolites, making them an area of interest in the search for new phytochemicals to cope with AMR. A great part of agri-food waste is of plant origin, constituting a promising source of valuable compounds with different bioactivities, including those against antimicrobial resistance.

Differences in the Volatilomic Urinary Biosignature of Prostate Cancer Patients as a Feasibility Study for the Detection of Potential Biomarkers.

Prostate cancer (PCa) continues to be the second most common malignant tumour and the main cause of oncological death in men. Investigating endogenous volatile organic metabolites (VOMs) produced by various metabolic pathways is emerging as a novel, effective, and non-invasive source of information to establish the volatilomic biosignature of PCa. In this study, headspace solid-phase microextraction combined with gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (HS-SPME/GC-MS) was used to establish the urine volatilomic profile of PCa and identify VOMs that can discriminate between the two investigated groups.

Influence of Cold Pre-Fermentation Maceration on the Volatilomic Pattern and Aroma of White Wines.

Aroma compounds play a key role in wine quality due to their importance in wine aroma. The aim of the present study is to investigate the influence of cold pre-fermentative maceration (CPM) treatment on aromatic and sensory properties of white wines from four grape varieties (Tempranillo Blanco, Maturana Blanca, Viura and Garnacha Blanca) during two consecutive years (2019 and 2020). A total of 62 aroma compounds belonging to different chemical families were identified using headspace solid-phase microextraction combined with gas chromatography mass spectrometry (HS-SPME/GC-MS).

Impact of Japanese beetles (Popillia japonica Newman) on the chemical composition of two grape varieties (Nebbiolo and Erbaluce) grown in Italy.

The effect of Japanese beetles (P. japonica) on critical quality indicators of Nebbiolo and Erbaluce grapes, specifically on their phenolic and volatile composition, was assessed. Adult beetle symptoms include extended skeletonization of leaves.

Underlying Features of Prostate Cancer-Statistics, Risk Factors, and Emerging Methods for Its Diagnosis.

Prostate cancer (PCa) is the most frequently occurring type of malignant tumor and a leading cause of oncological death in men. PCa is very heterogeneous in terms of grade, phenotypes, and genetics, displaying complex features. This tumor often has indolent growth, not compromising the patient's quality of life, while its more aggressive forms can manifest rapid growth with progression to adjacent organs and spread to lymph nodes and bones.